Apple Cinnamon and Cheese Biscuits

 

1 tube large Grand Flaky Biscuits
2 large apples
1 stick butter
1 cup light brown sugar (packed)
1 tsp. cinnamon
8 slices cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Use a spring pan or casserole dish large enough for 8 large Grand biscuits without them touching.  Pull the biscuits in half and place 8 half on the bottom of the baking dish.  Core, peel and cut the apples into 1/2" chunks (approx.).  Place in a pan with the butter, sugar and cinnamon.  Allow the sugar and butter to melt over med. high heat and the apples to cook until they're barely firm in the center.  Spoon 1/2 the apples over the biscuit halves.  Place a slice of cheese over each half.  Top with remaining 8 biscuit halves.  Spoon remaining apples over each half and drizzle with the liquid.  Bake 45 minutes or until biscuits are done.  Sprinkle with more cheddar cheese (optional).  

Comments:  This dish is so easy yet so tasty that even if you've never eaten cooked apples or apple pie with cheddar cheese, you can't help but love it.  This idea actually hit me in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep.  I had made the crescent roll apples before but this one comes out more like a cinnamon roll.  Which reminds me, taste the apples when you boil them to see if you need to add more cinnamon.  I like a strong taste that soaks into the biscuits.

Slow Cooker Chops or Ribs

 6 lean pork chops or 2 lb. Country Rib Boneless Pork

 1/2 cup of flour

 1 tbsp. salt

 1 (10 oz.) can chicken and rice soup

 1 1/2 tsp. dry mustard

 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

 2 tbsp. oil

Coat pork chops in mixture of flour, salt, dry mustard, and garlic powder and brown in oil in skillet. Place browned pork chops in crock-pot. Add can of soup. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 1/2 hours.

Comments:  The original recipe called for pork chops but I found some Country Boneless Ribs on sale so decided to give them a try.  They were about 1 1/2" thick and about 4-5" long.  They were perfect!!  I did use my gluten free baking mix instead of flour and sprinkled a little onion powder and some pepper into my flour mixture.  These served 6 easily and they were so tender that they pulled apart with a fork.  This is a simple, must try recipe.

Bacon Brussels Sprouts

3 slices bacon, cut crosswise into thin strips

1  lb. frozen Brussels sprouts, halved lengthwise

1  med. onion sliced thin 

2  tsp. thyme leaves

salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a 12-inch cast-iron or other heavy oven-going skillet, cook and stir bacon over medium heat until bacon is browned and crisp. Use a slotted spoon to remove bacon to paper towels to drain. Add Brussels sprouts, onion, thyme, and salt to skillet. Stir to coat with drippings. Crush bacon and stir into sprouts.  Transfer skillet to oven and roast, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until just tender and browned, stirring once.  Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with reserved bacon.

Comment:  I have found my favorite way to cook Brussels Sprouts!  The taste of the bacon, onions and Brussels Sprouts are one of the best blends ever.  Of course I did chance the original recipe just a little.  I increased the bacon from 2 slices to 3 and cut down the Brussels Sprouts from 2 lbs. to 1 lb.  I eliminated the red pepper flakes and used white onions instead of red only because I didn't have red on hand.  This is a must try of you like Brussels Sprouts even just a little bit.

Spicy Shrimp

1/4 lb. medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/4 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp. Ginger, minced
2 cloves of garlic, minced

In a medium-size bowl, toss shrimp with lemon juice.  Season with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil on medium-low heat.  Add the shrimp, orange juice, ginger, and red pepper flakes.  Sauté 2-3 minutes turning the shrimp and stirring frequently.  Add garlic and continue to sauté until the shrimp are pink and opaque, about 3-4 minutes longer.  Serve with additional lemon juice.  Serves 2

Nutrition Facts per serving - 264 calories, 138 calories from fat, 15.6g total fat, 172.4 mg. cholesterol, 314.8 mg sodium, 315.4 mg. potassium, 7.1 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 3.1 g sugar, 23.6 g protein

Recipe Tips

Diabetic Exchange: 1 vegetable + 3 lean-fat meat + 2 fat.

Shrimp is heart healthy and provides a source of vitamin B12 and protein.  Lemon and orange juice contain vitamin C and strengthen the immune system.  Garlic contains sulfur compounds and boosts the immune system.  Ginger strengthens the immune system and decreases inflammation.  Red pepper flakes contain capsaicinoids that decrease inflammation.  Olive oil is a mono unsaturated fat and is heart healthy.

Comments:  This recipe came from Bonnie Raffel's book The Power of Food.  I love the taste and texture of shrimp but usually coat it with cocktail sauce.  No more!  This recipe makes the best shrimp I've ever eaten.  It needs no cocktail sauce.  The flavors form the juices, ginger and garlic are perfect.  And the touch of red pepper gives it just enough heat to make it even better.  I wouldn't change a thing but will be using this recipe when I cook my scallops.  I have no doubt that will come out just as good.


Comment from Food Tester Carol:  This dish leaves the impression of lightness.  It's a delicious recipe and the searing of the shrimp in the lemon and orange juice makes them moist and tender.  It's simple and quick and a real pleaser.

Sloppy Joes

1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup bell pepper (green or red), chopped
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. water
1 - 1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic
1/4 cup ketchup
6 rolls or buns


In a large skillet cook ground beef, onion and peppers until meat is brown and vegetables are tender.  Drain.  Stir in tomato sauce, water, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and ketchup.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer uncovered 5 minutes.  Serves 6


Comments:  When wanted a recipe for a healthy Sloppy Joes and ran across one in one of my Better Homes & Gardens Cookbooks.  I made a couple of changes.  I made my own tomato sauce by running a can of tomatoes in sauce through the blender.  I used garlic instead of garlic salt and added the ketchup.  For my buns I used Bagel Thins with Everything.  This added to the flavor but also kept the dish healthy.  Taste wise - this is delicious!  I never once noticed the elimination of salt.

Quinoa Pepperoni Pizza Bites

2 cups cooked Quinoa
1 cup pepperoni, chopped finely
1/2  cup mozzarella, finely grated
1/4 cup Parmesan, finely grated
2 eggs
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 cup tomato sauce for dipping
Fresh minced parsley for topping (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl place eggs and whisk until the yolks and whites are mixed.  Add in all the other ingredients and stir to combine evenly.  Grease a mini muffin tin lightly (recommend using butter or cold-pressed olive oil and use your fingers or a piece of wax paper to leave a light layer all around the bottoms and sides).  Spoon in quinoa mixture and press down on the tops so the filling is compact.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Use a butter knife to pop the bites out of the pan.  Serve warm with sauce for dipping.

Comments:  The key ingredient in this recipe is the Quinoa.  If you've not tried this tiny little seed, let me tell you a little about it and hopefully you'll give it a try too.  It is an excellent source of magnesium, iron, tryptophan, copper and phosphorous.  Its rich in iron, calcium.  It contains all nine essential amino acids.  It's an excellent source of fiber and starch, low in calories and gluten free.  Now, how can something that healthy taste good?  Try this recipe and you'll find out!  I did make 2 changes in this recipe.  I didn't add the salt and I used Pizza sauce for dipping.  But I will tell you, to me, the sauce isn't needed.  This is delicious just as it is straight from the oven.  The original recipe came from Love From the Land so visit the site for more delicious recipes.

Banana Cream Cheese Pie

2 graham cracker pie shells
1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
1 pkg (8 oz.) cream cheese softened
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 cartons (8 oz.) cool whip
3 bananas
1 box (3.4 oz.) French vanilla pudding mix
1 3/4 cup milk
chopped pecans for garnish

Sprinkle shells with pecans.  Whip together cream cheese, sugar and ONE carton of cool whip.  Divide evenly between the 2 pie shells, spreading to smooth.  Slice bananas and divide between the 2 pies.  Mix pudding with milk.  Spread evenly over the bananas in each pie.  Top each pie with 2nd carton of cool whip and sprinkle with nuts.  Refrigerate about 1 hr. before slicing.

Comments:  This recipe was given to me by a friend.  Her directions were for making this in a 9 x 13 x 2 pan.  She used 1 box of graham cracker crumbs, 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup pecans mixed in a plastic bag, pressed into the bottom of the pan and baked at 300 degrees for 10 minutes.  I changed that by using the 2 pie shells and sprinkling the nuts on the bottom of the shells.  For her pudding mix she used 1 large pkg of the French vanilla pudding but due to the difference in the size of the 9 x 13 and the 2 round pie shells I cut that down to 1 small package and cut the milk by 1/4 cup so it would come out a little more like a pie than a pudding mix.  For her topping she used whipping cream and added sugar.  I made the change to another container of cool whip.  Either way, this dish is simply delicious!  And the changes are unlimited.  You can use strawberries, blueberries, cherries, pineapple, on and on for your fruit.  Just remember to pat dry any fruit with a lot of juice such as pineapples and cherries.  You can also change the pudding flavor to fit your fruit.  Maybe chocolate when using cherries.  Or even pineapple when using pineapple.  Have fun with this one.

Butter Cake (with Coconut)

1 1/3 cup good quality unsalted butter, softened (300 gr)
7/8 cup of castor sugar* (200 gr)
pinch of salt
2 cups shredded coconut
3 cups all purpose flour (300 gr)

1 egg, slightly beaten

Mix the butter with the sugar and salt until smooth.  Mix in coconut then mix in the flour 1 cup at a time until you have a dough that sticks together to form a ball.  Wrap in plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.  Press the dough into a deep pie pan.  Brush dough top with egg and let rest for 1/2 hour.  Preheat oven to 390 degrees (200 C).  Brush again with egg and use a fork to create a grid.  Bake 20 minutes or until golden.  Let cool before taking out of pie pan. 

Comment:  This recipe came from the Netherlands and it called for *castor sugar.  I had no idea what that might be so I did the usual and googled it.  Castor sugar is a very fine sugar but it isn't powdered nor confection sugar, which contains corn starch (I didn't know that.)  It can be made by putting sugar into a blender and pulsing a few times to make it the consistency of the powdered sugar.  I did this using 2 cups of regular sugar and then measured out the 7/8 cup of what was then castor sugar.  It worked perfectly but did leave me with a little left over which I'll use in place of powder sugar when needed.  The recipe called for a butter cake mould which I assumed was a lot like a deep pie pan.  I have a deep glass pie pan and it worked perfectly.  The one thing not called for in the recipe was the coconut.  When reading the original I couldn't help but Think With My Taste Buds and I could taste the butter and coconut together in this recipe.  It was a great addition.  All of my food testers loved it!  Especially while still warm.  For the grid I simply ran a fork across it in one direction, turned it and ran it across the other way making a crisscross grid.  This recipe is wonderful.  For the original recipe plus, visit Eva in the Kitchen.

Food Tester Carol's Comments:  Like so many traditional dishes, this Butter Cake is a very simple recipe - butter, flour, sugar, yet Martha has brought new life to it by adding coconut.  You can't just break off a corn to nibble on.  This dessert does not allow one nibble.  The flavors are so appealing, they call yo to cut another sliver, and another sliver and yet another.  We love the coconut addition to this cake that is just a step away from a shortbread, but I must admit that it was so good I was busy thinking of lots of new additions to give it a new taste sensation!

Popcorn Squares

1 pkg. lightly salted popcorn
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 bag (10 oz.) mini-marshmallows
1 bag (8 oz.) mini-Oreos, crushed

Cook popcorn according to package directions.  Place in a large bowl being careful to pick out any that didn’t pop.  Add chips, marshmallows, and Oreos.  Mix.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Line a large 13 x 10 ½ x 2 baking dish with parchment paper.  Bake 10 minutes.  As soon as you remove from the oven, cover with another piece of parchment paper and press down to ‘glue’ the ingredients together.  Remove from pan and cook completely.  Cut into squares. 

Comment:  These are a little difficult to work with but they are worth the trouble.  I did find that they must be completely cooled before cutting and they cut easier if you run the knife under water with each cut.  I've decided that these would be good with the addition of nuts or coconut.  You could also use other flavors of cookies.  The Oreos are a bit difficult to crush due to their filling but plain chocolate cookies would work great.  For my popcorn I used Orville Redenbachers Simple Salted.  It has just enough salt to give you the sweet and salty taste.  

Leek, Broccoli, Potato Soup

2 leeks, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
1 pkg. (1 lb.) frozen broccoli florets, thawed
2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. butter
6 cups water
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1 Tbsp. corn starch
½ cup evaporated milk
salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot over med. high melt olive oil and butter.  Add leeks and sauté 3-4 minutes.  Add broccoli, potatoes, garlic, water and bouillon cubes.  Cook covered until potatoes, broccoli and leeks are soft.  Using a potato masher, mash all veggies.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Mix corn starch in evaporated milk until completely blended.  Stir into soup.  Bring to a boil for about 2 minutes stirring constantly.  Serves 6-8. 

Comments:  I went looking for a soup recipe using leeks and broccoli.  I found several but neither was completely what I wanted so this recipe was developed by pulling from 2 others plus my own additions.   Both called for 1 small potato but I increased it to 2 large.  One used veggie broth, one used chicken broth.  I used the bouillon cubes adding one at a time until I got the taste where I wanted it.  One called for ¼ cup of half and half.  I changed that to ½ cup of evaporated milk.  Both called for the soup to be run through a food processor but I changed that to the masher and added the corn starch for a very slight thickness.  With all my changes I came out with a really delicious soup!

Comment from Carol:  This is a soup full of character.  Each ingredient has a character of its own and what I think gives it dynamic taste is the fact that the ingredients are mashed, or smashed, not pureed into one blended flavor.  The distinctive taste of each morsel is recognizable as broccoli or leek with the results being a lively soup with complex flavor.  This is not a soup that tastes simple; it is substantial.  This soup positively shouts out "I am healthy!" to the estent that my 95 year old mother wants to add it to the list of soups we make to give to friends and family when they need cheering up: 1) fresh chicken-vegetable; 2) potato leek; 3) AND NOW broccoli, leek potato

'Crab' Cakes

1 cup imitation crab, chopped
2 cups Pepperidge Farm Seasoned Stuffing Mix
1 cup Pictsweet Seasoning Blend (onions, peppers, celery & parsley)
1 egg
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup butter (1 stick) melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Add the egg to the 1/2 cup of water and whisk till blended.  Pour all ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Let sit about 30 minutes allowing stuffing mix to soften.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Make mix into patties and place on parchment.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until browned.  Makes 8, serves 4.

Comment:  Yes, this can be made with real crab but with the economy that can get expensive and to be honest I kind of like the imitation.  The original recipe came form an old cookbook that had lost its cover so I have no idea of it's name but it does appear from around the 60's - 70's.  The original did not have the peppers and parsley that come in the Pictsweet seasoning blend but it did call for the mix to be stuffed and baked inside 4 bell peppers.  These little changes made it simple to make and oh so good.  There is a slight sweetness from the red and green bell peppers as well as the 'crab'.  Blend that with the seasonings in the Pepperidge and you have the perfect taste.  No condiments needed.